1 Response to wb12rosol_nadal

1. Voo de Mar says:

   June 28, 2025 at 10:28 pm

   Points won by each set: | 43-43, 27-24, 25-22, 15-27, 29-21 |
   Points won directly behind the serve:
   37 % Rosol – 52 of 137
   43 % Nadal – 60 of 139

   The biggest sensation of the year 2012 – Nadal [2] had played Wimbledon finals in the years 2006-11 (except 2009 when he withdrew) while Rosol [100] had never played on a Centre Court in any of Slam/Masters 1K events before. Nonetheless the 27-year-old Czech wasn’t intimidated at all, throughout the match (excluding a short period in the 4th set when dropped four games in succession) he was playing like ‘Roddick’ – the three-time Wimbledon runner-up a decade before – not like a player known for several years only to fans who follow the Futures/Challengers competitions. Rosol wasted three set points in the opener (Nadal fired an ace at 5:6, another two SPs he firmly withstood serving at 6:7 and 8:9 in the 11/9 tie-break). Usually after losing a tight opener against a favorite, a much inferior player succumbs in the following two sets, Rosol had other ideas though. He broke Nadal in the first game of the 2nd set, and at 1-all in the 3rd, not having any troubles to hold afterwards. Nadal seemed helpless any time when Rosol’s first serve (67% for the match) landed inside the box – frequently when the Spaniard somehow returned, the Czech finished him with a forehand winner in 3- or 5-stroke rallies. Rosol was playing a brilliant match from tactical point of view, he wasn’t interested in longer rallies that potentially would wear him down being very aggressive as a receiver, making errors off many Nadal’s second serves. As Nadal took the 4th set, not many spectators could believe in an upset given Nadal’s fantastic 5-set record at the time (15-4, losing those four five-setters only to multiple Slam champions: Hewitt, twice Federer & Djokovic). Sunset was approaching though, and the officials decided to carry the decider under the roof – Nadal was unhappy because it stopped his momentum. Indeed, after a 30-minute break, Nadal seemed a bit disconnected and lost two games quickly. Rosol was on fire on serve, paradoxically the easiest hold he experienced serving for a win of his life – three aces and a forehand winner in a three-stroke rally. He celebrated the 3-hour 18-minut victory on his knees. In the third round he lost in straights to Kohlschreiber, and never went beyond the last 32 at majors, losing at this stage also at French Opens ’11 & ’15, and Australian Open ’16.
   Aftermath:
   …it was revealed that Nadal had a problem with his left knee tendinitis (not clear how much it affected that second round shocking loss) and he was side-lined for the rest of the year; he was supposed to return at the Australian Open ’13, but withdrew with a stomach virus, and became active at Vina del Mar a few weeks later – he lost there in the final, but the 7-month break turned to be very beneficial for him; he was fresh & eager, and the season 2013 is known as one of the most impressive in his stellar career (he captured 2 Slams and 5 Masters 1K events). The loss to Rosol initiated a few slim years for Nadal at Wimbledon though, perhaps it took away from him his grass-court self-confidence.
   Rosol became a regular ATP player and kept this status for four years, playing four ATP finals in the meantime (record: 2-2). He played against Nadal four more times, losing each match, but on two occasions he was relatively close to upset Nadal again (6-4, 6-7, 4-6, 4-6 at Wimbledon ’14 and 6-1, 5-7, 6-7 in Basel ’15) – at Wimbledon ’14 the Czech had a set point to lead 2:0 in sets, in Basel he was two points away on serve to beat Nadal “6-1, 6-4”!

   Serve & volley: Rosol 3/4, Nadal 2/2

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